Mr Qlewley
Reference.
KS
WORLD WIDE (SHIPPING) GROUP
Mr William Lee spoke to me on the telephone this
We had a long talk but the upshot of it all
1. morning.
was
(a)
I
Mr Pao is apparently most concerned about equipment. Mr Lee suggested that all the safety equipment on ships on the British Register should be manufactured in Britain. I said that I was surprised to hear this. knew that there were international standards in this matter and I said that Hong Kong would obviously expect ships on the Hong Kong Register to maintain those international standards. The matter was left that if Mr Lee wanted further information on this point he would write for it.
(b) Although Mr Pao had talked about a Hong Kong
"flag" he was in fact only thinking about "regulations". He understood that there
could be no change in the present "flag" arrangements in view of Hong Kong's position as a dependent territory.
(c) Mr Pao did not wish to press for a separate
Register for Hong Kong.
21 September 1971
En.
E-O Laird
DD 737719 557664 500M 2/71 GM_3643/2